Autism

The Countess of Mar: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many children in the United Kingdom are known to suffer autistic spectrum disorders; and what were the trends in the numbers of those suffering from the disorders between 1990 and 2005; and
	What planning provisions are made by the Department of Health for current and future health and community care, including respite care, for children and adults suffering with autistic spectrum disorders.

Lord Warner: The Department of Health commissioned the Medical Research Council to produce a report on the prevalence and incidence (epidemiology) and causes of autism. The report, published in December 2001, considers recent studies which suggest a prevalence of autism in children under eight years of age of approximately 60 per 10,000 and more narrowly defined autism 10 to 30 per 10,000 children under eight. The report finds that much of the headline rise can be accounted for by changes in diagnostic practice and public awareness. The report is available on the MRC website at www.mrc.ac.uk/pdf-autism-report.pdf.
	It is for primary care trusts to plan and commission appropriate services such as respite care for their local population including people with autistic spectrum disorders.

British Citizenship

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Why people holding the status of British National (Overseas) in Hong Kong, whose applications for registration as British citizens, originally lodged in 1997-98 and recognised as having been valid, are being told by the British Consulate-General in Hong Kong that those applications may take a further 18 months because of the volume and complexity of the work.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: British Nationals (Overseas) in Hong Kong, who previously applied to register as British citizens under the British Nationality (Hong Kong) 1997 Act but were deemed not to have met the requirement to be solely British, can request to have their applications reconsidered. This is in the light of a clarification made by the Indian authorities on Indian nationality law. The British Consulate-General initially offered the standard advice that applications for registration as a British citizen may take up to 18 months for the process to be completed by the Home Office. Following negotiations between the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Home Office, that advice has been revised. Extra resources are being allocated to this work in April, after which the average processing time for the Home Office is expected to be in the region of five weeks. The British Consulate-General website will be amended to take into account Home Office reassessment times.

Disability

Baroness Greengross: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many people were registered disabled in the United Kingdom, including those with limiting long-standing illnesses, in each year since 1997.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: Estimates based on data from the Family Resources Survey show there are 10.1 million disabled people in Great Britain, including people with limiting long-standing illnesses, of whom 4.6 million people are over state pension age and 700,000 are children. Everyone included in these estimates would meet the definition of disability in the Disability Discrimination Act.
	In addition, each local authority is required by law to maintain a register of disabled people living within its area, for the purposes of planning and providing appropriate social services. However, registration is entirely voluntary. Therefore the information held does not accurately represent the prevalence of disability. The available information is in the table.
	
		The number of registered disabled people in Great Britain -- in the years shown
		
			 Year Total (Millions) 
			 1997-98 1.8 
			 1998-99 1.8 
			 1999-2000 1.9 
			 2000-01 1.8 
			 2001-02 1.7 
			 2002-03 1.7 
			 2003-04 1.6 
		
	
	Source: Family Resources Survey
	Notes:
	1. The figures in the table relate to people registered with local authorities under the National Assistance Act. For the purposes of this Act, disabled people are defined as "persons who are blind, deaf, or dumb, or who suffer from mental disorder of any description, and other persons aged 18 or over who are substantially and permanently handicapped by illness, injury, or congenital deformity". This definition is separate from that used for the purposes of the Disability Discrimination Act.
	2. The implementation of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 repealed various sections of the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944, including sections related to the register of disabled persons.

EU: Education

Lord Dykes: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will support the French Government's proposals for a European Union educational module for secondary school students, teaching basic European Union values, origins and history.

Lord Adonis: Although the EU can encourage co-operation between member states, the content and organisation of education systems is the responsibility of member states. Pupils in England learn about Europe and the European Union at secondary school. They are taught about the history of Britain in its European and wider context within national curriculum history and about the world as a global community, the role of the European Union and the UK's relations in Europe, including the European Union in national curriculum citizenship. Teaching also reflects the underpinning values and principles of democratic life which are already covered in the European and United Nation's Human Rights conventions. The Government believe that these provide a robust basis for young people to learn about our shared values. The Government recognise the importance of pupils gaining an understanding of EU history, and that is reflected in the national curriculum.

Government Computer Systems: Department of Health

Lord Harris of Haringey: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	On how many occasions in each of the past two years malicious programs have compromised computer systems in the Department of Health; and for each such occasion (a) how many machines were affected; (b) how long it took to remove the programs from the system; and (c) what the impact was on the activities of the department.

Lord Warner: In the past two years, the computer systems at the Department for Health have been compromised by malicious programs (such as worms, viruses, etc) once. On this occasion, one machine was affected. The machine was isolated from the network as soon as the infection was discovered; the malicious programmes were removed following detailed investigation, and the incident did not have a significant impact on the activities of the department.

Hepatitis C

Baroness Masham of Ilton: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What provision for monitoring hepatitis C infection in prisons will be made following the closure of the Public Health Laboratory Service; and
	Whether they will take steps to survey the numbers of those infected with hepatitis C in prisons, collect the information centrally and establish a system of annual reporting to track the progress of the disease.

Lord Warner: We have no plans to repeat the 1997–98 survey of prisoners with hepatitis C.
	All prisoners undergo health screening on reception into custody to identify those with immediate health needs, or who are at a high risk of having a significant health problem. Tests, and associated pre-and post-test discussion, are offered to individual prisoners who are, or have been, at risk of contracting a blood-borne virus.

Mental Health: Offenders

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether, in calculating the length of time a prisoner has waited to be seen by a hospital consultant for a mental health problem, they will start the clock from the point where the patient has been identified as needing referral, so that if the first referral fails and a subsequent one is necessary, the clock is not restarted.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: Comprehensive mental health assessments, either by in-house or visiting psychiatrists who work in the prison routinely, are generally carried out within one week of referral. The start point for determining how long a prisoner has waited for an appropriate hospital bed is the point when the prisoner is offered a bed by the provider mental health service. We are currently consulting on the basis on which we record cases with a view to improving the transfer process.

Mental Health: Offenders

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many prisoners are occupying beds in prison in-patient units for psychiatric assessment purposes; and whether they consider that prisons are the right environment for such assessments.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: This information is not available centrally. The on-going improvements in prison mental heath services help to provide that all those who are sent to prison by the courts have their mental health needs addressed from reception to release. Where a mental health assessment, by a mental health professional, is needed to facilitate a transfer to hospital the Mental Health Act 1983 provides for this and for indication of the appropriate level of security required. Such an assessment must be carried out within the prison in the first instance.

Neuroscience

Baroness Greenfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What assessment they have made of the seminar series Collaborative Frameworks for Neuroscience and Education funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) through the Teaching and Learning Research Programme; and what plans exist to foster interdisciplinary bridging research in education and neuroscience that falls between the remit of the ESRC and the Medical Research Council.

Lord Adonis: The Teaching and Learning Research Programme aims to support and develop research which leads to improvements in outcomes for learners of all ages and in all sectors of education, training and lifelong learning in the UK. The seminar series on Neuroscience and Education runs until June 2006. On its conclusion, the Economic and Social Research Council will undertake a full evaluation in line with its normal practices, based on anonymous peer review. A public report will be published later in the year. I will arrange for the chief executives of the Medical Research Council and Economic and Social Research Council to write to the noble Lord about their plans for interdisciplinary research.

NHS: General Medical Services Framework

Earl Howe: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the new quality and outcomes framework will apply only to 2006–07; when the next set of negotiations will start; and what the timetable is for the next General Medical Services Framework Review.

Lord Warner: The new quality and outcomes framework applies to the financial year 2006–07. The next stage of the negotiations for April 2007 onwards will focus on emerging evidence on the patient benefits of the existing General Medical Services contract, patient feedback, and the implications of Our health, our care our say: A new direction for community services. The Department of Health is reviewing these issues and NHS employers will then be mandated to discuss changes to the General Medical Services contract for 2007–08 onwards with the British Medical Association's General Practitioners Committee.

NHS: Heart Disease

Lord Jones of Cheltenham: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What assessment has been made of the reliability of arterial stents in the treatment of heart disease.

Lord Warner: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published a technology appraisal on the clinical and cost effectiveness of use of stents for the treatment of heart disease in October 2003. It was recommended that stents should normally be used when clinically appropriate in people with narrowing of their coronary arteries who have angina or have had a heart attack. This decision should be based on individual assessment. NICE is currently reviewing developments in newer types of stents and is due to publish and update on its earlier guidance in September 2006.

Passports

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Under what circumstances is it lawful for the United Kingdom Passport Service or a local British Consular Post to refuse a valid British passport application where the British applicant refuses to surrender, for confiscation by the British authority, a foreign passport held by that individual; and under which United Kingdom law, regulation or rule the British national is compelled to surrender his foreign passport to the United Kingdom Passport Service or British Consular Post.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: Passports are issued under the Royal prerogative at the discretion of the Secretary of State. Foreign passports sent to the United Kingdom Passport Service in support of passport applications are returned to the holder once all necessary checks have been completed. United Kingdom law allows British citizens to hold a second nationality. However, dual nationality is illegal in certain countries. In the majority of cases in these countries, British consular posts encourage dual nationals to return the passport of their second nationality to the appropriate authorities.

Pensions

Baroness Byford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What is the administrative cost of paying state pensions from the initial application onwards; and how much it costs to transfer the pensions though (a) bank accounts, and (b) post office accounts.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: The Pension Service continues to develop its activity based information better to understand the cost of processing state pensions and other benefits. A modern resource management system is being rolled out across the department in 2006. This new system includes the costing functionality. Until this work is complete we cannot provide the cost of processing state pensions to acceptable levels of accuracy.
	The average cost to the department of making a payment into a conventional bank account is £0.01. The average cost of making a payment into a post office card account is approximately £1.00.

Railways: Double-Deck Passenger Trains

Lord Berkeley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What instructions they have given Network Rail on the need to make allowances in track or structural renewal projects for the future accommodation of double-deck passenger trains.

Lord Davies of Oldham: The value of double-deck passenger trains as a possible solution to railway capacity problems is a matter which is being considered by the Department for Transport. Once this work is completed, decisions can be taken on whether to make the substantial investment in infrastructure modification that would be needed.

Terrorism Bill

Lord Judd: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will place in the Library of the House copies of all the correspondence between the Mayor of London and the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the subject of the Terrorism Bill.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: I am happy to do so.

Young Offenders: Diet

Baroness Greenfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Bassam of Brighton on 9 February (WA 124), what criteria were used to determine that the numbers involved in the study of nutritional supplements at HM Young Offender Institution, Aylesbury, were too small to enable wider conclusions to be drawn.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The bases for the advice that wider conclusions could not be drawn from the study of nutritional supplements at HMYOI Aylesbury were that:
	The research took place in one prison; it is therefore not possible to demonstrate that findings from this study can be generalised to other environments.
	The study used adjudications in prison as the outcome measure; therefore it is not possible to demonstrate that the findings from this study can be generalised to other behaviours.
	The results, for a sample of 172 young adult prisoners, was a reduction in adjudications of 35 per cent for those taking the active supplements. Statistically, however, this produces a wide range of possible reductions—from 16 per cent to 54 per cent. A larger sample size would allow us to be more precise about the impact of the supplements.